OK, I am in a position where I have an opportunity to buy an '86 Honda VFR700F2 cheap. A friend has a roommate who is way behind in rent, and selling the bike could just about get him caught back up with my friend (assuming that the money doesn't go for crack, but that's another story). The owner laid it down, so the fairings and running lights are messed up on the right side. Also needs a crankcase cover (supposedly $135 from a Honda dealer) before it can be run. According to my friend, it was running strong before his roommate laid it down.

Looks kind of crappy (homemade flat black paint, hole in the back of the seat) but appears to be complete. I was wondering if this might be a good starter bike.

VFR's were always great bikes. Its gonna be a lot of bike for a starter bike, even at 20 years old its fast. But its not unmanageable. My first bike was a V4 honda Sabre (basically the same motor as the VFR) when I was like 18. What is cheap? I would think you could find a clean version of that bike for right around $2k, maybe less. I would want to pay less than $1k for what you described.

Guy will take $800 but I think I can probably deduct the cost of the crankcase cover from that.

The early Honda V4 engines had trouble with inadequate top-end oiling. (Anecdotally, this was particularly the case with the VF500, but I've heard of other models suffering from this as well.) I'm not saying this bike will have the problem, but a ruined cam would be expensive enough to effectively write off an $800 bike. So buyer beware.

Replacement plastic on any sportbike can be very expensive. You can likely find a cheaper fiberglass replacement, but it'll be PITA to fit up.

Other stuff that typically goes bad on old bikes (not exclusively this bike):
Drive chain and sprockets ($200)
Fork seals ($100)
Brakes ($100 for pads)
Battery ($50)
Tires ($250)

You should realistically expect to sink another $700 to $1000 to get an old sled back on the road, depending on how badly it's been neglected.

what makes you the expert????


oh yea... you had something to do with developing a race bike from scratch!!

Decent all around bike for the time. Not the fastest and not the best cornering bike but somewhere in the middle. The Yamaha's cornered better and the Suzuki was faster. I had an 86 Ninja 600, a 91 Yamaha FZR600 and a 91 Suzuki GSXR750. I didn't care for the Hondas around then. You sat a bit too high on the bike for my taste. I liked the Yamaha best.

If you ever blew a fork seal It's not a good time. I'd listen to Dave and replace the parts he listed. I blew one on the ninja and greased up my front brakes. I ended up skidding through an intersection with only rear brakes and almost got killed. Scary stuff.

Hey, let's try to keep that quiet, OK?

Thats a Gen2 available in the tarrif 700 and the 750. Solid bikes and if maintained will go a LONG ways I particularly liked the Red White & blue livery!

Click to view attachment

A good friend of mine had the 700 motor, and he couldn't say enough good things about it. He claimed to have found an entirely new power band -above- the redline.

When they were raced, you could tell which one was the V4 motor, even if you couldn't see them. All the other bikes would work up through the gears exiting onto a straight, the V4's would simply keep on revving...

-Josh2

I figure that I would be taking it on as a bit of a project if I did pick it up... like I mentioned, the right side has some cosmetic damage, and the owner painted it flat black... right over the factory decals. I do like the blacked out look on some bikes, though...

http://thekneeslider.com/archives/2009/01/...idson-iron-883/

I don't have to make up my mind immediately on this bike. Good thing, because if I had to decide now, I would say no, because I'm not sure how deep I would be getting into repairs on what is at the moment a rather unattractive bike.

Nice looking Supersport in your avitar Dave!
This is the VFR I sold last year to finance my 2056/5 lug conversion. I miss it.

I know. Don't remind me.... I miss her!

But the teener is tip top!

Whoa, that's nice too! Something for Babydoll to aspire to.

The VFR700 was white originally with the VFR750 being red / white / blue. Great looking bike with many dreamers like me at the dealership...

I had a thing for the FZ700 in blue and yellow though...

and I ended up riding an '81 SR 500 if anyone knows what that is...

I would search for a better one for a little more cash. Also, used parts are pretty easy to get if you know the source and the cover and plastics will not be as much then. If you want a project and have $800 burning a hole, go ahead, but expect a can of worms.

Wanna by my 96 BWM K1100RS? I am looking to sell Great bike for a big galute like you

This is my favorite bike of all time. The Yamaha YZR 500. It has the weight of a 500 but the power of a 1000. A buddy of mine imported one from Japan. I wish I could get my hands on one.

Could you possibly mean a "BMW"? Or are you interested in selling a BWM???

So post or IM me a pic or two, and a more detailed description. I might be interested...

Eric Read

I'm guessing that's probably a bit larger and more expensive than what I would be interested in for a starter bike. Thanks anyway...

I'm not really in the market for a bike, though... the topic of this thread could just fall into my lap. The more I look at the VFR, though, the more I think it would just be a money pit.

Money pit!
When and if you do want to ride, you will want to ride, not buy a bike your going to have to spend time making ready to ride. Buy one that is ready to ride. It is a buyers market on scooters these days, so I'm sure there are some deals to be had.
I just purchased my first Harley-Davidson. Now there is a bike you can ride with pride! I don't think there will ever be an issue getting parts for it.

Bob

If you decide to pass on the bike, contact Root (Rod) and let him know about the situation. He's into bikes; Kyle is too so maybe they'd be interested.

I hear you... I like this one a lot... love the blacked out look because I hate chrome. Still, I would prefer to start with a starter bike (under $2K) to see if I like motorcycles, before anteing up for a Harley.

Ken- I have a 96 VFR750F that I picked up for $1K & brought back to life. It was the red one out front of my garage @ the ECC. Although I enjoyed bringing her back to life immensely, the cost was prohibitive. Between parts & my labor I could have bought a new one for the same $ w/out all the trouble & time. Still, I learned a lot & absolutely love the bike. MPG is always between 35 & 55, depending on how hard you hit it. Power band is the entire RPM range like everyone has stated.
BTW- there's a new VFR1200 comming out in April. Supposed to have 200bhp!

My god, the bike I posted about looks like crap compared to yours!

Thanks, but so did mine when I started. My bike was totaled; it had gone down @ least once on each side. Four yrs after I thought I was done I wound up replacing the entire wiring harness & installing a heavy duty regulator/rectifier to stop all my electical gremlins. Way too much work.

Factory link to the new VFR1200F

http://www.feelvfr.com/en_GB/pages/mainpage

Did you Black out the frame?
I also have a 97 (Gen4) last of the carbed, non-linked brake, bikes.
I think the model has lost some it focus in yrs past ..
Vtec Linked brakes, ABS ect Blah! Less of a Sport Tour'er & more focus towards Tour. The 1200 isnt my cup o tea

Ken, I think my bike may be in your range I will PM you.

Eric, let me see if I have pics. And yes, BMW, not BWM

Ya- just like Ken I hate shiny. Think I'm going to do the pegs, forks & arm as well.
I agree w/ you on the loss of focus on the VFR, but a shaft driven 200bhp V4?! A little chopping, a little modding & you got one wicked death machine. Still, I usually feel my heart moving up to my throat when I hit 95mph & back off :whimp:

I hate shiny as well

Figures, my bike pics are on my old lap top. The bike is sequestered in my garage, and it is raining. Pic as soon as I get the time

I'll keep it quiet, if you give details on the CB400-4 in your sig (Best headers ever!)

I know nada about the Honda V4s aside from they look cool and sound even cooler.
I know that you can really spend more on a bike that needs a little work than it's worth. I've put about 2x the purchase price into my Bandit 400...good thing I didn't sink money into my FZR400 before I sold it.

Let us know the final outcome on the VFR

Pretty sweet, even if they only offer 3 colors.

I'm sure, as before, other colors are available in other countries. My VFR came in blue in Belgium!

I loves me some blue... if I bought the junky VFR, it probably would have ended up being painted Dodge Intense Blue Pearl Metallic (same color as my gone-but-not-forgotten Dodge Neon R/T).

At any rate, that's a British website... where in America would see see a phrase like "optional top box pad which fits on a bespoke aluminium rear carrier" ?

94 VFR750F in factory blue

I like the single headlight VFR. Not sure of the year, but a guy I know had one that was gray and white.

Awesome bike. One of my favorites.... your avitar is scary as hell though...

Damn straight its 1/2 a V8~!!

Here are some candid shots of the BMW. It was laid down very gently (slid to a stop from 10mph in the rain and dropped, high crown). That is why I was painting it with shark jaws on the rubbed side.

tumor (two more)Click to view attachment

I have the side cover off as I am getting the battery out for winter inspection and storage.
Click to view attachment

It just had to be blue, didn't it?

Blue? That there is SEXY dark INDIGO metallic (GM39-ish). It is a color that looks bad ass on there. Scotty B could paint it for you for a good price if you decide to buy it

Here is a pic of its smaller twin that I sold to Brando. Its an 87 K75S that I put the RS fairing kit on. Same color and fairing. The bike under it is different. The 96 is WAY better

word I'll hook you up Ken. Mikes bike isn't that bad, would make you a really nice ride that will hold its value. I wish I had gotten that K75, I just didn't have the loot at the time. I've parted with several bikes over the years but I don't see me ever letting my R bike go. There's just something about the air cooled Beemers. Hoping I can afford a Triumph Sprint next year

Wow, sounds awesome! If I can get my vehicle situation straightened out next year, it could happen. I have to either unload or fix and keep the Benz.

I've had two v65's, 1100ccs, the first was a 83 with a header. 130hp stock. The second was a 85 stock one with a little less hp. The first had been ridden hard, it needed a clutch at 30k. The clutch used 9 disks, 4 or five were to stop rear wheel lockup on deceleration. At about 140 my eyes vibrated so much most small objects were a slight blur. I had a v45, thats 750ccs, later that was low mileage. It was about 78hp, it ran better a stock 1200 sportster. I spent 4k on a nice 1200 new sportster trying to get it to perform like the v65. Also some of the money was to fix oil control problems the hd had if you try to run it a few miles at 5k rpms. Harley's are ok but not for a high performance type rider. To me they are for low speed crusing and egos. Most of my friends ride harleys and they ride the speed limit. They are also still in good shape from many years of safe riding. I am not a safe motorcycle rider and have permanant nerve damage in my left hand because of it. I still have my harley though.

My experiences with the v4's was very good, they can be ridden hard and will take it without needing mods to keep them up to snuff. They are good for lots of miles.

My buddy's roommate moved out without paying any back rent. He chained up the bike as he is holding it as collateral. Talked about putting a lien on it... and said I could have it for $400. I'd think about it if he can get a clear title, but I'd still inspect it thoroughly to figure out what needs to be done and what I could reasonably do.